Five Weddings
by Ffreader1000
Summary: It was going to be a long wedding season.
1. Let the wedding season commence

AU [Ichigo K., Orihime O. and other pairings]

Don't own Bleach or any of its characters

CHAPTER 1 "Let the wedding season commence!"

It was June – the start of the wedding season. This would be a busy one for Ichigo and his friends. Now in their mid-to late 20s, a lot of their college friends were starting to get getting married. The group consisted of Chad, Uryu, Mizuro, Keigo, Tatsuki, and Rukia. They went to the same high school and some of them went to the same college in Karukara or nearby in Tokyo. This group of friends stuck together through it all.

You see, they had been invited for a total of five weddings over the course of the summer, starting the first weekend in June.

The first invitation came from Toshiro and Momo. Toshiro was 24 and Momo was 26. This did not come as a surprise to anyone. They were childhood friends that became closer, especially in college. Toshiro picked up the pieces of Momo's broken heart after her boyfriend Aizen broke it off with her. Momo and Aizen had been going out since she was a freshman in high school and Aizen a senior.

Ichigo was the best man at this wedding, which surprised everybody. No one saw that coming, but Toshiro didn't have many close friends – actually many close male friends. Ichigo was a sparring partner of Toshiro's at the neighborhood dojo and Rukia was friends with Momo. And that's how everyone got to know each other.

The wedding was in Yokohama, a few short hours from Karukara. Mizuro's family had a large home there where most of everyone in the group was staying. Ichigo and Chad, who didn't or forgot to check on where everyone else was staying, opted to book hotel rooms where the wedding was taking place.

Toshiro and Momo opted for a Western wedding ceremony and held both the ceremony and reception at a hotel. The ceremony was held in the outdoor garden of the property. It was a beautiful day and not a cloud in the sky.

The ceremony was going to start in a few minutes. Ichigo stood there in deep thought standing next to Toshiro. He thought about his dad's constant nagging of having grandchildren. Ichigo thought about how it wouldn't be bad getting married – hell, he always saw himself settling down someday and having two or even three kids running around. He also thought about the many girls he's dated over his life – well, not really many, about four – and how they never worked out.

Although he would never admit it, he wanted a love like his parents had. He remembered his dad and mom telling him and his sisters that when they first met each other, they just knew they were meant for each other. According to his dad, his mom was the sun, his world. And when she passed, he never even thought about dating again.

Sighing, he went back to that thought, "How many girlfriends has he had now?" About four? Five? And they were all lovely women - they were. Well, five if you counted Senna twice – they had gotten back together again six months ago staying together until last month.

Before that, they dated for about a year and a half in college. They were together a total of two years - the longest out of Ichigo's relationships.

He was brought out of his reverie as a he heard a crash, he looked up to see a flower pillar knocked down at the end of the aisle and a waterfall of long auburn hair falling on the ground. A few guests had already surrounded her, making sure she was alright and helping put the flower arrangement back into place. The young woman quickly got up, brushed down her floral dress and waved her hands in protest that she was alright.

Ichigo was trying to suppress chuckles or at least trying to quiet them down at this incident with a hand held over his mouth. When the small crowd cleared, he was able to get a good look at her. His held his breath, his hand still over his mouth as their eyes met. Orihime quickly noticed him across the hall - his bright orange hair and his amusement, hand over mouth. He was trying to suppress his laughter. In the few seconds, he took in all of her, her big light brown eyes, thick dark brown lashes, blush stained face, plump lips down to her heavy chest and down her petite but curvy figure. "Who's is she?" he thought.

Down at the end of the aisle, the girl lightly gasped and quickly looked away from him clearly embarrassed. Then music started and the incident was quickly forgotten as the procession started.

He looked for her at the reception. Orihime was doing the same standing in a corner of one of the large doorways in the back peeking - eyes scouring the room hoping to get a glimpse of the best man. She was sure, he probably brought some beautiful date - a girlfriend or wife.

Orihime was the cake and dessert maker. It was wedding season and she was doing a wedding every weekend over the next two months. She had gotten close to Momo as she was very involved in the cake design and picking out the rest of the dessert options that would be served at the reception. And so Momo extended an invitation to Orihime to attend the ceremony.

Orihime had said she would stop by a few minutes at the beginning of it as she had her hands full with dessert preparation. So after that fall, she had found a seat in the back, laid low, and stayed until Momo joined Toshiro at the altar then she slowly and carefully made her way out back through the ballroom and to the back towards the kitchen.

In the corner of the ballroom, Rukia stopped beside Ichigo, "Hey! Hello? Earth to Ichigo…"

"Oh sorry, Rukia. What's up?" replied Ichigo, not even bothering to turn his head to address her. Rukia looked at his light of sight to an auburn-haired woman peeking at the crowd of guests as she stood at one of the back doorways where the servers were going in and out from. She was now outfitted in a chef's jacket looking much different from when Ichigo first saw her. Her hair was tied up in a high ponytail and she work dark blue jeans. Uruyu came to stand by the two and smirked, "Love stuck are you, Ichigo?"

That shook Ichigo out of his daze. "What the hell are you guys talking about? I'm just thinking about what I have to say for the best man speech."

"What? You didn't prepare one already?," Uruyu replied with shocked eyes. Then a bit of silence.

Rukia also seemed in a bit of thought looking up contemplatively at her orange haired friend and sighed. Uruyu shook his head at that. He knew that Rukia had been harboring a long-time crush on Ichigo, but she never said anything to him or anyone. He was perceptive and knew that Ichigo, as dense as he was, would never notice the signs Rukia was giving him and Rukia being stubborn would probably never tell him. But then again, Rukia and Ichigo always bickered and she always hit and scolded him so he guessed he would give Ichigo a break at the way Rukia showed her feelings.

"Do you believe in love at first sight?" Ichigo mumbled. Uruyu lightly smiled, "Maybe," as he looked at the woman Ichigo was staring at.

Quietly Rukia responded, "Her name is Inoue Orihime. She's the pastry chef that made Toshiro and Momo's cake and whatever is on the dessert course."

"Doesn't she have her bakery in Karakura and known for her wildly unique flavor combinations?" Uruyu asked. Rukia just shrugged.

Ichigo looked to his friends as the dinner bell rang, "Well, let's find our seats."

It was going to be a long wedding season.


	2. When We Met

_Some characters might be a bit OOC. Will also highlight other characters. Rating may change._

Ichigo and Orihime didn't see each other again

Until later that night.

The reception was starting to die down at close to 11 pm. The bride and groom had already been whisked away after the bouquet and garter tosses.

The bouquet was accidentally "caught" by Tatsuki (it had landed in her lap) who tried to throw it back quickly into the crowd of girls in front of her, but the floral wire was caught in her lace dress. Squealing was heard as the girls and everyone else turned towards her. She accepted her fate. Tatsuki stood up from her chair and held the bouquet up with a wide plastic smile. Her friends cheered and whistled a little louder knowing that it would irritate her more.

Next had been the garter belt toss. Ichigo and some of his friends had conveniently disappeared then. A flushed Toshiro fired it into the crowd of eligible bachelors and it was caught by none other than Keigo Asano. He was deserving of it. After all, he had been the one to outwardly and enthusiastically express his hopes of romance and of one day marrying (soon) the girl of his dreams. For awhile it had been Rukia. But that really was just that - a dream.

It had been awkward when Keigo and Tatsuki had to take a picture with the bride and groom. Luckily, they were at the opposite ends for the photo.

As people made their way out of the ballroom, some of the revelers decided to continue the party in the hotel bar in the lobby.

Ichigo and Chad decided to bid their friends goodnight at the front of the hotel. As they walked, Ichigo spotted Orihime walking into the bar. Ichigo stopped I his tracks and fell to the rear.

"Umm...I'm kind of tired," said Ichigo loudly rubbing the back of his neck as his friends turned around to face him. "I'll see you guys tomorrow when we check out, around 11 ok?" And with that, his friends left him behind.

He made his way to the bar. A man was talking to Orihime. Ichigo was about to leave when she saw her take a step back awkwardly after he moved in closer to her. Ichigo walked towards them. Something in him felt like he needed to protect her, "Hey there!"

They glanced his way. The man looked like he had a bit too much to drink. Ichigo watched Orihime's face go from confused then pleasantly surprised, and then relief in a matter of seconds.

She blinked twice. "Oh, hi honey!" She smiled wide, quickly grabbing him and pressing him to her "I'm glad you found me."

The man looked Ichigo up and down. "I guess you weren't lying about having a new boyfriend, eh?"

Orihime ushered Ichigo out of the bar quickly.

"Well, I actually wanted to ask if you'd like a get a drink with me...I guessed the moment passed?" Ichigo questioned.

Orihime softly smiled and stared up at him. They now stood in the lobby in front of the elevators.

"Oh, were you actually waiting for your real boyfriend?" Ichigo lightly panicked.

She shook her head, "Thanks for saving me back there. I'm Inoue Orihime." She held out her hand. Ichigo took it, "Ichigo. Kurosaki Ichigo."

As Ichigo finished introducing himself they heard a voice as a person turned the corner. "Ahhh ha!" They turned around to see the man from the bar.

"So you are really still single..."

"No ...," stammered Orihime, a bit annoyed.

"She's with me. We were just role playing..." said Ichigo. _I'm brilliant he thought to himself. _

"Didn't see you as that type of girl, but then again you were dating Grimmjow." the man smirked. He turned to Ichigo, "Role playing, huh? You must have one hell of an imagination coming up with that name Ichigo - like the fucking fruit!"

Ichigo was now more than irritated. "But I like it," Orihime blushed.

The man entered the elevator with them. Orihime pushed floor 20. Ichigo turned to the man, "Your floor?" He looked up, "Oh, looks like we're on the same floor."

The elevator door closed.


	3. One Night Stand

The door to her hotel room was wide open. She stepped in and turned around to face him, as he stood in the hallway leaning towards her.

They noticed the man from the elevator linger walking slowly past the couple. She looked in Ichigo's eyes and signaled with her eyes for him to come in. Before taking the step into her room, he turned to the man now in front of his own room two doors down and shrugged his shoulders playfully.

After talking off their shoes at the door and slipping into comfortable slippers, Ichigo looked around the room, rubbing the back of his head with a sheepish expression. He hadn't been this nervous before.

She mirrored the same slightly flustered look as she asked him to take a seat. There was only the bed or the desk chair. She giggled quietly as his eyes darted back and forth from the bed to the chair. It was adorable.

She walked to the end of the bed and sat patting the space next to her. "Want to watch some tv? I think a rerun of _Laugh Hour_ should be on soon."

He smiled and nodded as he walked towards her and took off his jacket. She stood up and reached out for it and folded his jacket neatly over the chair.

He sat down on the edge of the bed and rubbed the back of his back of his neck again. She turned on the tv. As she sat back down she said, "You don't have to stay, you know. I'm sure he's not lurking around anymore."

He looked at her as her eyes faced straight ahead as she flipped the channels. The light from the television reflected in her eyes. He just stared for a moment at her profile before turning his back to the tv. "I don't think I've seen this episode yet.."

She grabbed some pillows from the bed and handed him two of them. He relaxed as he moved towards the head board, resting the two pillows behind his back as he sat back. Now it was his turn to pat the space next to him. She happily complied as she mirrored his position beside him.

After a few minutes, they relaxed after watching a few sketches with minimal small talk. He was startled at her laughter, it was pure and carefree. He decided that he liked that about her best.

"Not a fan of _Laugh Hour_?" She asked turning to him after her laughter had died down. She observed that he did not once laugh, and now a bit embarrassed at her boisterousness. Even in the dim room, she couldn't hide her flushed cheeks.

He laughed and leaned in, putting a hand on her cheek and softly kissing her on the lips. Her mind was spinning as she kissed him back. It was slow and romantic. He pulled away for a moment, watching her flutter her eyes open and give a soft sigh. He smiled before leaning back to continue. They didn't want to stop.

The theme song for the ending credits came on, and they finally pulled apart from their make out session. He reached out once more to touch her hair, planting a soft, chaste kiss on her lips. She turned off the television. The only light now was from the lamp from her bedside table, which was dimmed and gave off a warm glow. They just looked at each other. After a few moments, she gave him a small and sweet smile.

xxxxx

They were both on their knees now on the bed. She planted her palms on his chest as he slipped an arm around her waist pulling her closer, the other hand in her hair. They didn't utter word.

He kissed the top of her head and bent over moving to kiss her on the tip of her nose and then her lips. Her arms had snaked up to wrap around his neck. She caressed the the back of his head and neck as he moved his hands closer to her lower back just above her bottom. She let out a small moan. Their pace remained slow and sweet as he bent down further to nuzzle her neck. He peppered it with soft, lingering kisses as she tilted her head back.

Her hands moved back down, now to his collar tugging his tie before pulling away slightly. She reached out to play with his top button and he sighed in disbelief. She wanted him as much as he wanted her.

He let her loosen and take off his tie and then to his shirt, watching her the whole time.

Orihime, too bashful to look up tried to steady her hands, eyes in concentration as she moved to carefully unbutton his shirt.

With the last button undone, she finally looked up to meet his deep brown eyes as she helped him peel off his shirt.

Not taking his eyes off hers, he reached over to unzip her dress and then carefully lower her dress straps one after the other to reveal her oversized chest and soft skin. He grabbed her waist, pulling her up to stand. He was still on his knees. The dress fell swiftly off her body. As she wrapped her hand around her waist, almost exposed with just her bra and panty, his hands reached out to untangle her arms from around her waist. He looked up. "You're beautiful " they said at the same time. He chuckled. She was a strange but wonderful girl. She had called him beautiful.

He touched her - tracing her skin as if making long delicate brush strokes with his fingertips starting from the bottom from top of her feet to her ankles, calves, and up her thighs. He wrapped his hands around her legs, squeezing the back of her thighs as he moved even closer kissing her abdomen and hips...

xxxxx

She woke up first, her back pressed against his hard chest. She couldn't help but smile remembering what happened last night. Twice. Her. Orihime. Prude Orihime as her friends called her - that slept with someone she just met...her first one night stand that she secretly hoped didn't end as that.

It was still too early, the sun hadn't come up yet. Feeling comfortable in his arms she turned toward him snuggling on his chest. He automatically slipped an arm around her waist and laid his chin on top of her head.

He woke up from hearing several pings on his phone. He reached out to carefully grab it from the nightstand. It was Chad reminding him that they had to meet their friends in the lobby by 11 am. Another text came in from Rukia mentioning the gang might come early to grab breakfast at the hotel restaurant. He checked the time - 9:02 am - and then looked the woman sleeping against his chest. He smiled. It had been the best night of life.

xxxxx

She stirred and woke up to find herself alone. She sighed in disappointment. Orihime looked up at the clock - 9:25 am and wrapped herself in the blanket and closed her eyes again. Five minutes later the alarm went off. _Better get up and take a shower._ As she sat up, she found a note on the nightstand.

_Went to get ready. Meet me for breakfast downstairs at 10? _

_-Ichigo _

She hurried to get ready. She was replaying everything that happened. Thinking at how she was so open with him after they had first made love and had talked awhile before round two. She wondered at how willingly she gave herself to him. She was the one to wait awhile, frustrating her boyfriends. Well, the three boyfriends she's ever had in her life. She didn't even sleep with Grimmjow.

xxxxx

She had checked out and had her rolling suitcase with her as she made her way to the restaurant. She spotted him.

Even though she was all the way at the other end of the hallway, she could spot his bright orange hair, his back towards her.

She stopped in her tracks as she watched a tall, busty, green haired girl jump up on Ichigo. "Nell?" He stumbled back holding her so they didn't fall. She kissed him full on the lips.

_Oh god.._.Orihime thought as she chastised herself for being so foolish and stupid. She quickly turned the other direction, which thankfully was towards the front entrance where she could catch a taxi. Nearing the automatic door, she bumped into someone. Her bag fell with a loud thud and the sound echoed across the hall. She profusely apologized to the petite, raven haired girl as she grabbed her bag. Orihime asked if she was ok. The young woman recognizing her replied that she was fine.

"Orihime!" she heard Ichigo yell from across the hotel as he walked quickly towards her. She didn't look back but instead hurried toward an approaching taxi. As she shut the taxi door, she turned to look up at him. He met her eyes as he yelled out for her once more as the raven haired girl held him back from crashing into a car that was pulling up. _Goodbye, Ichigo, _Orihime whispered.

"What the hell was that about?" Rukia asked. Ichigo said nothing as he tried to catch his breath and tried to understand what just transpired.

"You have lipstick all over your face," she smirked. He looked horrified as he wiped his mouth with his shirt. _Oh god, she saw that..._


End file.
